China's emerging role in the global semiconductor value chain

Abstract

The global model of semiconductor development has resulted in an asymmetric and interdependent relationship between China's critical role in semiconductor production and those regions such as the US which control the key inputs into the value chain. While this unbalanced relationship has facilitated many of the companies involved in the value chain in exploiting the comparative advantage of different locations for different functions and has allowed a complex ecosystem of supplier networks to emerge over time, the increasing influence of geopolitical considerations associated with the growing tensions between the US and China has created considerable uncertainty about the future evolution of this value chain. It is within this uncertain context that China's efforts to achieve greater autonomy in the development of its own semiconductor sector will be examined in this paper.